Promoting College Match for Low-Income Students: Lessons for Practitioners

Most high school reform efforts understandably focus on boosting the success of low-income students who are underachieving academically, but in every school district where students struggle, there are academically capable low-income and minority students who do graduate prepared for college. Yet each year, many of these students choose to attend nonselective four-year colleges where graduation rates are distressingly low. Others enroll at two-year colleges, where degree completion and transfer rates are even lower. Many more do not attend college at all. In 2010, MDRC and its partners pilot-tested an innovative advising program, College Match, in three Chicago public high schools. This practitioner brief presents practical lessons from that program. It offers five strategies that show promise, that could be widely applicable, that counselors and advisers can integrate into their existing college guidance activities, and that can be implemented in college advising settings in and out of schools

Harming the Help-Seeking: Necessity for Assessing Harmful and Biased Attitudes Toward Clients with Substance Use Disorder

Numerous times, as a new clinician, I have witnessed the substance use disorder population referred to as not being dependable, dangerous, burnt out, and even hopeless. Often times I have heard mental health professionals make statements amongst themselves that the client could not be helped, referred to them as a “frequent flyer,” (meant to convey they frequently present for treatment, relapse, and return for treatment), and complain how tax dollars are being wasted to support the client. I felt empathy and a sense of hopelessness for these clients as they were seeking treatment in order to get help and yet they were faced with the potential of harm from clinicians with what appeared to be biased and negative attitudes. This project addresses the need to assess bias from the clinician’s perspective and the construction of a scale to measure this bias. This population experiences bias and stigma from society and is at risk for harm if they experience that bias from the clinician whom they are seeking help from. My hope is that this scale will aid in raising awareness to this issue, reduce stigma, and thus reduce harm within the treatment of this population

Intersectionality, Resistance, and History-Making: A Conversation Between Carolyn D'Cruz, Ruth DeSouza, Samia Khatun, and Crystal McKinnon, Facilitated by Jordana Silverstein

A good, solid, history-writing practice is one which, I think, shakes people's ideas of the world and their place in it, compelling them to imagine new social, cultural and political formations which can provide an account of life. Kimberle Crenshaw's development of the term 'intersectionality', and the ways it has been taken up by people of colour within the academy internationally, as well as by activists, provides one example of such imaginative work. Because when you spend some time in the Australian History academic scene, at conferences, in departments, talking to other academics, it's quickly noticeable that one of its key features is its hegemonic whiteness. Even in those spaces that aspire to avoid whiteness, it's inescapable, visible daily, as well as in the themes at conferences, the keynote speakers chosen, the food served, the knowledge shared. When it came time for the Australian Women's History Network conference in 2016, which carried the theme of 'Intersections in History', it felt like this could provide a way of modelling a different kind of Australian academic History space. What would a conversation look like that skipped over the presence of white Anglo Australians, I wondered? What if we just left them to the side? What if we gathered together some of the smartest, sharpest thinkers in Melbourne academia, and spoke amongst ourselves, coming up with new formations of knowledge? And so we did: Crystal, Samia, Ruth and Carolyn gathered together, I asked them some questions, and we had a conversation that, in numerous ways, challenged white hegemonies. We've recreated some of that conversation below, as a way of continuing to think together, and to find new ways of making this thinking public

Eating and Physical Activity Habits of College Students.

No abstract

Maternal exercise during pregnancy and the influences on cardiac autonomic control [abstract]

Comparative Medicine - OneHealth and Comparative Medicine Poster SessionBackground: Our previous research found decreased fetal heart rate (fHR) and increased heart rate variability (HRV) as a result of regular maternal aerobic exercise. These results suggest exposure to exercise throughout gestation influence cardiac autonomic control. However, it is still unknown if these affects persist into the postnatal period. Aims: This study tested the hypothesis that regular exercise during pregnancy leads to deceased HR and increased HRV in infants relative to infants of mothers who did not exercise throughout gestation. Study Design: Magnetocardiograms (MCG) were recorded at one month postnatal age from 13 regularly exercising (>30 minutes of aerobic exercise, 3x per week) and14 healthy, non-exercising pregnant women. Normal R-peaks were marked within the infant MCG to measure HR and HRV in the time and frequency domains. Differences between infants of exercisers and infants of non-exercisers were examined using ANOVA to account for infant activity state. Results: One month old infants from exercising mothers had lower HR relative to infants from non-exercising mothers (p=0.06). This potential difference was still present during the active state (p=0.08) and the quiet state (p=0.11). Conclusion: These findings demonstrate the differences observed in fetal HR and HRV from exercise throughout pregnancy are still present after birth

Ethanol Byproduct Feeds: Determining Accurate Fiber Content, Nutrient Composition and Variability, Storing with Low-Quality Forages, and Fiber Utilization in Finishing Diets

The growing ethanol industry has produced vast quantities of distillers grains plus solubles (DGS) in the wet (WDGS) and dry forms and Sweet Bran wet corn gluten feed (SB). Previous research has demonstrated that these byproduct feeds result in improved feeding values compared to grass in growing diets and corn in finishing diets, with positive economic returns. Four experiments were conducted to evaluate dry matter determination methods and variability of nutrient composition for WDGS, determining the accurate method for measuring NDF in corn and DGS, compare feeding WDGS mixed with straw as either fresh or ensiled, and evaluate fiber digestibility and metabolism characteristics for feeding WDGS and SB in finishing diets. Drying wet byproduct feeds at 60ºC for 48 h was similar to toluene distillation, but these were different compared to drying at 105ºC for 3, 8, or 24 h, vacuum oven drying, and Karl Fischer titration. Mean composition of WDGS was 31.0% CP, 11.9% fat, 0.84% P, and 0.77% S (DM basis). Variation of CP and P was small. Dry matter and fat varied more across ethanol plants than within and across days. Variation in S was greater in period 1, but decreased in subsequent periods and variation was similar within days compared to across days. Grinding corn samples through a 1-mm screen Tecator Cyclomill and using two doses of alpha-amylase during the relux process results in the most accurate NDF values. Using a pre-fat extraction step prior to the traditional NDF procedure results in more accurate NDF values for DGS. Increasing the level of WDGS from 30 to 45% DM and mixing this with straw resulted in increased ADG and G:F and feeding these mixtures as ensiled also resulted in improved ADG and G:F compared to feeding them as fresh mixes. Steers fed SB at 35 or 88% DM consumed more DM and NDF compared to feeding 35% WDGS. Feeding a Lactobacillus buchneri direct-fed microbial did not affect DM or NDF digestibility for feeding diets containing 35% SB or WDGS, but did increase digestibility for feeding 88% SB. Monitoring accurate DM and nutrient composition of DGS, and accurately determining NDF content of corn and DGS makes for useful information in evaluating fiber utilization of byproduct feeds in growing and finishing diets. Feeding WDGS stored with straw results in greater cattle performance compared to the fresh mix and using the DFM in 88% SB diets improves digestibility

Gas-Phase Reactions of Methamphetamine with Hydroxyl Radicals and Ozone

Gas-phase reactions involving methamphetamine, the hydroxyl radical (OH·), and ozone (O3) at (297 +/- 3) K and 1 atmosphere total pressure were investigated. A bimolecular rate constant, kOH·+methamphetamine, (960 +/- 100) x 10 -12 cm3molecule-1s-1, was measured using the relative rate technique for reactions of methamphetamine with OH·. Pseudo first-order techniques were used to measure the bimolecular rate constant, kO3+methamphetamine , (2.7 +/- 0.5) x 10-17 cm3molecule -1s-1 for reactions of methamphetamine with O 3. Product studies to determine the degradation of methamphetamine in the gasphase were conducted and the products of these reactions were identified. The positively identified methamphetamine/OH· and methamphetamine/O 3 reaction products were: benzaldehyde, ethanedial (glyoxal), and 2-oxopropanal (methylglyoxal). The use of derivatizing agent O-(2,3,4,5,6-pentafluorobenzyl)hydroxylamine (PFBHA) was used to propose phenyl-2-propanone as the other major methamphetamine/OH· and methamphetamine/O3 reaction product. The elucidation of this other reaction product was facilitated by mass spectrometry of the derivatized reaction products coupled with plausible methamphetamine/OH· and methamphetamine/O 3 reaction mechanisms based on previously published volatile organic compound/OH· and volatile organic compound/O3 gas-phase reaction mechanisms

Developing an Electronic Health Record Training Program for New Employees

In May 2015, an electronic health record (EHR) was implemented at an urban, long-term care facility. This facility is part of the county Department of Public Health (DPH) and was one of the last locations to implement the designated EHR system. The unique nature of the facility compared to the smaller, health care centers within the DPH network necessitated development of a customized training and onboarding program for new employees. It was not possible to duplicate an existing training program. The registered nurse (RN) informaticist assigned to the EHR used data from nursing staff surveys and information collected through a literature search to assist with developing a training program. Several “best practices” for training and instructional design recommendations based on adult learning theory were identified. The budget for the project was $26,649 which included establishing a mobile classroom, certification training for the informatics RN, and educational materials. The potential and perceived value for improved patient safety, nurse satisfaction, and interoperability among other facilities justified the initial program investment. The program established a channel for communication between departments regarding EHR access, training, and staff support. Tools were developed to track and document the onboarding process; these resources are available for future orientations and ongoing implementation and training needs. This paper will describe program development, tools, and best practices that directly impact the clinical and operational phases of onboarding for new technology deployment in a long-term care setting